White's second-half outburst lifts Bobcats

Point guard takes over en route to career-high 26.

Published 12:01 am, Thursday, March 10, 2011

KATY — After missed 3-pointers, especially when he's the one who misses, Texas State point guard Ryan White is supposed to sprint back on defense.

This time, however, he did the exact opposite, crashing the glass for an offensive rebound that he muscled back in for a game-tying three-point play.

And that was pretty much how the second half went for White, who scored 21 of his career-high 26 points after halftime to lead the Bobcats past Southeastern Louisiana 72-68 on Wednesday night in the first round of the Southland Conference tournament.

“I wanted to be aggressive on offense, keep attacking,” said White, whose putback knotted the score at 42-all. “I actually didn't do my job on that play. But I went and got it.”

Texas State coach Doug Davalos took mock umbrage at the tactical breach, teasing that he'd run White today prior to Texas State's semifinal game against McNeese State at the Merrell Center.

Davalos could barely keep a straight face, though.

He praised not only White but his entire team for fighting back from a 38-30 deficit early in the second half.

“They don't ever think they're out of it,” he said. “Every time the chips are down, they respond.”

The Bobcats certainly did, holding on down the stretch even as Southeastern (15-14) made numerous charges.

White — who else? — scored on a second three-point play to give Texas State (16-15) its largest lead of the game, 62-56, with 6:20 remaining.

The Bobcats pushed ahead by eight on their next possession, but Brandon Fortenberry's 3-pointer cut the deficit to 70-68 with 1:08 left. Southeastern had a chance to tie after White turned the ball over. But Fortenberry gave it right back, after which Tony Bishop scored the last of his 18 points at the foul line.

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In light of all White had done, Davalos was more than happy to overlook for his player's late miscue.

“Certainly it was a team effort, but he put us on his 5-foot-10 shoulders,” he said. “He came out for one sip of Gatorade tonight. That's all I could afford to bring him off the court.”